1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally directed to a dispenser for small objects, such as candy, pills, tablets and the like. In particular, the invention is directed to dispensers having a plunger that rotates a hopper to load the hopper and dispense an object.
2. Related Background Art
Dispensers for candy, tablets, pills, and other objects of similar size are well known in the art. Dispensers range from simple box-like containers to elaborate toys that also function as candy dispensers. Dispensers that utilize various mechanisms for dispensing an object from a storage container are also known in the art.
Known dispenser mechanisms include those designed to dispense a single tablet, pill, or piece of candy from a pre-loaded stack. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,295,579 to Haas. The disclosed dispenser includes a storage receptacle in which a spring is biased to press a stack of tablets stored within the receptacle towards the dispensing end of the receptacle, which is covered by a pivoting cover. The uppermost tablet is pressed by the spring and any tablets beneath it into a bridge over the top of the receptacle. The tablet is dispensed by pivoting the cover, causing a skirt on the cover to push the tablet from under the bridge, thereby allowing the tablet to be removed from the dispenser. Closing the cover allows the spring to press the stack of tablets, such that the next tablet in the stack is pushed into the dispensing position under the bridge.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,705,576 to Amelio et al. discloses a pill or tablet dispenser having a spring that biases a stack of tablets against a rotatable cap. The cap has at least one recess into which the uppermost tablet is received when the cap is rotated into the closed position. Rotating the cap by hand exposes the recess, which contains a pill from the top of the stack, which can then be removed. Rotating the cap back to the closed positions allows the spring to move the next pill in the stack to enter the recess to be dispensed the next time the cap is rotated.
Various novelty dispensers, particularly for candy, are also known in the art, and often take the form of toys. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,651,475 to Fenton discloses a candy dispenser in the form of an animal. Pivoting the head of the animal pulls on a sliding gate, opening a hole in the body of the animal to allow candy or other items to be dispensed. Pushing back on the head slides the gate to its original position to cover the hole in the body, and prevent further items from being dispensed.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,244,463 B1 to Richards et al. discloses a candy dispenser in the form of a toy spacecraft. The dispenser includes an internal cavity for storing candy. Pressing on a button on the spacecraft, which may be in the form of a passenger, retracts a hammer against a spring, unblocking an aperture in the bottom of the cavity, and allowing a piece of candy to fall into a firing chamber. When the button is pressed beyond a certain point, the hammer is released, and driven into the candy by the spring, so that the candy is dispensed as if fired from the spacecraft.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,267,639 to Menow et al. discloses a candy dispenser that produces simulated laughing sounds. Pulling on a trigger on the dispenser causes a flywheel to rotate, which moves the head and tail of a simulated animal on top of the dispenser, and causes a reed to vibrate to produce the desired sound. Pulling fully on the trigger also causes a slide valve, positioned under a candy storage cavity, to move forward. The slide valve has an opening that accepts a single piece of candy from the storage cavity. When the slide valve is moved forward by the trigger, the opening in the slide valve moves over a ramp and the exit of the container. As a result, pulling fully on the trigger releases a single piece of candy. When the trigger is released, a new piece of candy falls into the hole in the slide valve to be dispensed when the trigger is next pulled fully.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,213,342 B1 to Kinberg et al. discloses a candy dispenser that simulates a candy factory. The dispenser includes a rotatable cradle, disposed in the discharge path of the dispenser, and operatively connected to a motor by a gear train that repetitively rotates the cradle from a first position in which the cradle prevents the passage of candy through the dispensing opening to a second position in which the cradle permits passage of the candy from the loading chamber to the dispensing position. The repetitive rotation of the cradle dispenses a series of pieces of candy.
No known dispenser functions by simply pressing the dispenser onto a surface such a table or the users hand, or, equivalently, by pressing on the base of the dispenser. The present invention provides such a dispenser.